Girl Meets Vignettes
by scout28
Summary: Summary: Random snapshots of Riley and Lucas over the course of their lives. To be honest, there will be no overarching story here. This whole thing is purely selfish and for therapeutic purposes. Warning: FLUFF. ALL THE FLUFF. Riley/Lucas
1. Vignette One - Picnic

**Summary:** Random snapshots of Riley and Lucas over the course of their lives. To be honest, there will be no overarching story here. This whole thing is purely selfish and therapeutic. Warning: FLUFF. ALL THE FLUFF.

 **Vignette One – Picnic**

* * *

"Riley, I can't believe your father let me take you out on a date with just the two of us. It seems like just yesterday that we were seventh grade and your dad was trying to keep me out of his classroom," Lucas says wryly as they walk towards the patch of grass in Central Park he painstakingly chose for their picnic. In his left hand, he carries a large wicker basket containing all the picnic essentials. In his right hand, he firmly but gently holds Riley's much smaller hand.

Riley wrinkles her nose at the memory of her father then giggles, "Yeah, dad can be a bit protective. But I think he was just threatened by the idea that another guy might take his place as the most important man in my life."

Stopping abruptly, he turns to her in mock seriousness, "Riley, I tried being your brother and it was horrible. I can only imagine how much worse it would be as your father!" When she punches his arm, he adds, "Please tell Mr. Matthews that he has nothing to worry about."

Riley rolls her eyes then gestures for him to continue to lead the way. Internally, her stomach is churning. Partly because she is hungry but mostly because all the build up of the last two years has finally led up to this moment. For two years, they tip-toed around the idea of being a couple.

Finally, in their freshman year of high school, on the brink of a new adventure, they are finally holding hands as a couple. How she managed to contain her squeals of joy is a mystery for the universe.

When they get to the spot, Lucas sets up the picnic. When she offers to help, he stops her and says, "How about when you plan our next date, I let you do all the work then? Right now, I want to do this for you. Is that cool?"

A huge grin spreads across her face, "Next date?" His heart flutters at the sight of her smile.

"Riley, did you really think this would be the last?" he asks with a raised eyebrow.

Folding her arms playfully she replies, "Well, we'll see if you survive this one first. Hmph."

Standing upright he squints his eyes in challenge, "Well, if I can survive being thrown off of a bull, I think I can survive you, Matthews!"

"Be afraid, Friar. Be very afraid," she pronounces with a slightly raised chin.

"Oh, I'm shaking in my boots, ma'am," he drawls.

"Now that's settled, I'll let you finish," she says with an exaggerated eye flutter.

Lucas shakes his head and continues. Riley quietly enjoys the sight of her gorgeous boyfriend moving about quickly.

When he's finished, he sits on one side and pats the spot beside him for her to sit. He watches warily as his notoriously klutzy girlfriend sits down. To be fair, over the last few years, he's begun to notice that her clumsiness is subsiding and she's becoming much more graceful. She still trips over her thin limbs from time to time, but the frequency of those incidences has lessened since the time he first met her on a train when she flopped into his lap.

Out of his wicker basket he first pulls out a single red rose and hands it to her. Her eyes light up and she accepts his first token of affection. He then proceeds to set up their lunch of two large sandwiches, ginger ales, and cake.

When Riley picks up her sandwich, her eyes nearly pop out of their sockets. "Um, Lucas, I don't know if I'm gonna be able to finish this! It can barely fit in my hands! It's bigger than my face!"

Lucas laughs and says, "Sorry, Texas portions. My mom warned me that the sandwiches were huge while I was making them. If you don't finish, I'm sure I know a growing 16-year-old guy who can help you out."

"You made lunch yourself?" she says in genuine surprise.

Nodding shyly, "Yeah, I wanted to make sure that everything about this date was special. Sorry in advance if the cake isn't great, I made that too."

"Lucas, I love it," she says in awe at his thoughtfulness.

He shrugs and says, "I can't take credit for originality. My dad told me that when he took my mother on their first picnic together, he wanted to make sure that she was fed and that he made it all. Granted, he had the bigger challenge because my mother can eat her weight in food!" When she laughs, he adds, "My dad said that you know you've found someone special when fulfilling their basic needs becomes important to you. When wanting to make sure they've eaten well or slept enough becomes a daily concern."

Riley's heart speeds up and blush fills her cheeks. "Lucas, thank you. I don't know what to say other than I feel the same way."

For a moment, they get lost in each other's eyes. Both of them secretly memorize every detail about the other. Lucas commits to memory the way her dark hair frames her face perfectly. Riley focuses on his whole expression, which she knows to be the one only reserved for her.

When the moment passes, they slowly eat Lucas' offerings. Between bites, they talk about random topics ranging from their friends to whether or not fish have feelings. By the time they start on the cake, they are talking about future plans.

"Where do you see yourself in ten years?" Lucas asks Riley as she cuts a piece of their shared cake together. He knew he could have brought two pieces of cake but couldn't resist wanting the intimacy of sharing food with her.

Tipping her head to the side, Riley answers, "Hmm, I would be about 25. By that point, I will have graduated from college and maybe working on a Master's. Or working full-time somewhere… T-to be honest, Lucas, I still don't know what I want to do in the future. I don't think I'm really good at anything. Right now, I'm trying to figure out my place in the world." Looking down at her hands and feeling slightly embarrassed at her confession, she continues, "What about you?"

To Lucas, this was unacceptable.

Lifting her chin with the crook of his index finger, he gently raises her eyes to meet his, "Riley, you are the most open and generous person I have ever met. You have more passion for life than anyone. Ever. Not good at anything? You are the best problem solver. Those schemes of yours usually turn out well and improve people's lives. I don't think Maya's mom and Mr. Hunter would've gotten together without you. Not good at anything? You can get a complete stranger to open their heart to you and reveal their dreams! Sherpa Boy and I can testify to that! Not good at anything?" He drops his hand from her face in order to pick up her hand and place it over his heart.

"Riley, you tamed the heart of a boy who was known for raising his fists instead of using his head. When I first got to New York, I was so angry that I had to leave Texas. I thought that it was only going to be a matter of time before I did something and got kicked out again. I was, well, not in a good place. Then this angel fell into my lap in the subway and changed my life. You changed me because I wanted to be someone worthy of you."

Riley sits silently trying to process his words. Her eyes never drift from his. Unbeknownst to them, their heartbeats synchronize.

"Lucas, I am going to kiss you right now." And as if perfect mirror images of each other, they simultaneously lean closer, shut their eyes, and meet at the lips in a chaste but soulful kiss.

After their kiss, they just talk and lose track of time. As the people around them come and go, Riley and Lucas stay in their spot both refusing to let the date end. It isn't until the sun sets and both of them are forced by impending curfews that they pack their little world away into a wicker basket.

When Lucas drops her home, he kisses her good night and promises to text her when he gets home. When he leaves, Riley thinks about the secret of life: people change people. Every moment matters. For anyone else at the park, a young man and woman were having a simple picnic. For Riley and Lucas, they were laying down the foundation for a future.


	2. Vignette Two - Practice Part 1

**Vignette Two – Practice Part 1**

 _Author's Note_ : I swear there's fluff. I just like a nice build up to it.

* * *

"Riles, I'm telling you gotta go to one of Huckleberry's soccer practices. You're going to freak out," Maya pleads with her best friend after school.

Riley scrunches her eyebrows together in confusion. What could she possibly gain from attending? "I don't know, Maya, I really have to study for math. We have a quiz tomorrow!"

Maya stops her friend and clutches both her shoulders before saying, "Honey, geometry is a snooze fest for you. You will ace that quiz even if you don't study in the next three hours. But you need to go to this practice."

Still not fully understanding, Riley replies, "Peaches, I'm going to see him after practice! He always meets me at the library so we could go to mom's café together." She grins toothily and adds, "He likes it when we walk together after practice, says it's the best part of his day." Secretly, she thinks about how he also likes to kiss her on the way.

"Yes, yes I know, you two ride off into the sunset on a white horse and all the bunnies and woodland creature throw flowers at you!" When Riley looks away dreamily imagining what she described, Maya shakes her, "Riley, I'm telling you that you won't regret it! I was there yesterday so that I can take pictures for the school paper. I couldn't believe what I saw!"

Rolling her eyes, Riley relents, "OK, peaches, I'll go. I was hoping to wait till the first game to see Lucas play but let's be honest, how did I get this far without sneaking a peak?! I wanted to be surprised! But if you insist, I'll go." With that, the two friends head off to the pitch.

As they get closer to the stands, it becomes clear to Riley that watching the soccer team practice at Abigail Adams High School must be some sort of religion. Based on the nearly filled bleachers, one would think that there's an actual game going on.

"Wow, Maya, our classmates take soccer really seriously," she whispers as her blonde friend leads them to the back of the bleachers.

Maya responds, "Oh, honey, you have no idea." She leads them to a seat behind a group of four sophomore girls.

Riley grows increasingly more curious and wants to ask a million questions, but trusts that Maya has a purpose for bringing her there so she remains silent. Instead, she opts for looking for Lucas among the sea of jerseys. She quickly picks him out and raises her hand to say hello but stops waving when she realizes that he couldn't see her.

The team continues to do their stretches when it finally dawns on Riley that most of the supporters in the stands are female. Turning to Maya with wide eyes, she says, "Wow, our FEMALE classmates take soccer really seriously."

"Uh-huh. That's part of what I wanted you to see," Maya replies cryptically.

Riley tips her head to the side and looks at Maya as if she is a confusing math problem that needed to be solved. "Maya! What do you want me to see?"

Maya smiles mischievously and says, "Just wait and see. And listen."

Riley wants to say more but practice finally starts. Her attention quickly turns towards her boyfriend on the field.

Her first observation is that he's incredibly fast. He shuffles the ball between his feet and passes it to his teammates with ease. She also notices how much chemistry he and his teammates have. Riley can't wait to talk to him about it after practice.

And judging by the conversation in front of her, she is not the only one who notices.

"Friar is beyond gorgeous. He's incredible! I still can't believe he's a freshman! Sally, are you sure?" One girl says which launches the group into a loud conversation about the freshman phenom named Friar.

Riley isn't one to eavesdrop but any mention of Lucas and her ears become satellite dishes. She turns to Maya who has a knowing look on her face that silently tells her, 'Yes, THAT is what I needed you to see.'

Riley's mouth hangs open in genuine shock. Now, she's not blind to how handsome her boyfriend is but she just didn't realize until that moment that he has a following! They both are so stuck into their love bubble and microcosm of friends that the outside world didn't seem to matter.

Oh, now it's starting to matter!

"On his profile, it says that he's in a complicated relationship. But that was months ago and he hasn't been active since then. Those complicated relationships are so friggin' weird. I bet it's nothing. I tried searching for him on Twitter and Instagram, but it's like he doesn't exist anywhere but right here! Like where does he even hang out during lunch?!" This frustrated little cyber stalker makes a show of tapping away at her phone as if she's currently looking for him.

Seeing that Riley is about to confront Lucas' fan club, Maya covers Riley's mouth with her hand. She whispers, "You will not talk to them!" When Riley's eyes widen in protest, she adds, "We are not ending our freshman year by getting involved in drama with other girls! We've made it this far unscathed! I just wanted to show you that Ranger Rick has fans."

Riley pulls Maya's hand down and whispers back, "If you don't want me to say anything, then why show me this?!"

Maya slowly smiles and shrugs, "I don't know, I'm bored and Josh hasn't texted me back in ten minutes."

"PEACHES! If I can't say anything, then we're going!" Riley stands up and marches down the bleachers. Maya follows behind her laughing because she's never really seen her friend jealous.

Riley's mind is racing. Should she talk to him about it? He hasn't done anything wrong… But she couldn't help feeling mad. Did she really mind that other girls noticed him? Was she jealous? Is this a big deal?!

AND WHY HADN'T HE UPDATED HIS PROFILE SAYING THAT HE WAS IN A RELATIONSHIP? WITH HER?!

Halfway down the bleachers, they see a familiar face in the crowd: Smackle. Riley goes up to her, saying, "Oh no, please tell me you are not here to ogle at this man meat circus too! You're with Farkle!"

Smackle puts her hand over her chest and replies, "Noooo… I'm, um, here for scientific purposes!"

Riley squints her eyes at Smackle and folds her arms, "Oh yeah, what are you studying?"

"Um, well, um, the velocity with which the, um, average male soccer player kicks the ball to see if the, um…" Smackle trails off.

"You're here for the man meat circus," Maya says flatly.

Having been caught, Smackle puts her hands together as though she is about to recite romantic poetry, "Oh! Yes! And it's not just Lucas! Have you seen the other soccer players? Look how they run across that pitch with such finesse! Look at the way they shake the sweat from their brows like Greek gods! I love my Farkle but I am a woman with eyes, you know!"

"But where's Farkle? Does he know you're here?" Riley asks.

"Yes, of course! We don't keep anything from each other. When I'm here, he just goes to the school lab and experiments. We see each other after then we meet with all of you at the café," Smackle explains unrepentantly.

"Unbelievable! Is everyone here for the man meat circus?!" Riley exclaims and the crowd of teenage girls says in unison, 'YEAH!'

Riley's eyes and mouth widen in shock. Maya just shrugs and simply says, "Hormones. High school."

Riley folds her arms and announces, "Well, I, for one am NOT going to be a slave to my hormones! I am a strong independent woman who is not going to spend her day drooling over these boys! I have better things to do than sit around and watch these athletes like they're pieces of meat!" Due to her righteous tirade, she doesn't notice that the players have taken a break.

"You ladies should be ashamed of yourselves! Have some dignity!"

She also fails to notice that Maya is texting.

"Think of all the great feminists in history! They would be outraged that instead of studying and bettering our minds, we're out here being mindless drones worshipping the male physique!"

She also fails to notice a certain sweaty soccer player making his way towards her.

"Furthermore, do you think these boys appreciate the fact that they are being objectified? How would you all feel if people were just hanging around watching you like this?!"

She doesn't see that all the girls in the bleachers weren't listening and instead have their attention focused on said player.

"I am not going to let these boys affect me! Oh no, I'm a strong independent woman who's above all of this! I, for one," she says but is cut off when someone says her name.

She turns towards the voice and sees Lucas Friar in all his sweaty glory. "Riley! You're here! I thought you'd be at the library." He quickly greets Maya and Smackle and looks back at Riley. He smiles brightly at her and her mind goes to mush. All her feminist indignation is instantly sapped from her body. "If you stick around for a bit longer, I'll be done. We just have a few more drills to practice for our first game this week," he says but she's barely listening.

Riley is fixated on his body. She's fascinated by the way his thin white jersey clings to his chiseled chest and abs. She gulps and looks at his face.

"We're all really excited about the game. The coach says that he thinks we have a real chance at making state. I think so too. We have a great team," he says then pauses to takes a swig from the water bottle he brought and with that act everything seems to slow down in Riley's mind. She watches as his Adam's apple bobs when he swallows. Her eyes are trained on his strong neck covered in small droplets of sweat.

"Anyway, I'll tell you more about it after practice. Are you going to stick around?" he asks as he gently reaches for her hand. He gives her his trademark half smile. Still stunned by his masculine beauty, she nods. "What about you, Maya?" he asks.

"Sorry, Huckleberry. It's after school and I still don't have a chimichanga. Mama gotta eat," Maya responds. She's amused that her friend finally understands raging teenage hormones. Riley looks at her with fear in her eyes. Maya gives her an impish smile and shrugs, silently saying, 'You're on your own, kid.' With that Maya heads down the bleachers feeling pleased at the uproar she is causing among these adoring sports fans by bringing Riley to practice. She plans on rewarding herself with extra cheese on her chimichanga.

"All right, we'll see you later," Lucas tells Maya. Looking back at Riley, he says, "I'm glad you're here but now I'm a little nervous. I don't want to look like a fool in front of you!"

"Uh, you won't?" is all that Riley manages to get out.

"Oh Lucas! You're great out there! Superb! Amazing! Keep up the good work!" Smackle suddenly chimes in. "By the way, will you guys be doing shirts versus skins today?" All the girls around Smackle lean in closer to hear the verdict.

Lucas scrunches his eyebrows and answers, "No, not today. We're focusing on making plays. Why do you ask?"

Smackle lets out a nervous chuckle, "Just wondering. I, uh, was just curious."

"Ookayyy," he says slowly. Shaking his head and returning his attention to Riley, "Well, I have to head back to the pitch. We have a shorter practice today, so I'll come get you after I hit the showers. I wish I could hug you but I'd hate for you to be covered in my sweat." He leans over and pecks her on the cheek. There's an audible gasp from the soccer fans because of this action. "I'll see you later," he whispers with a wink.

When Lucas leaves, a bemused Riley takes a seat next to Smackle, who smirks at her, "Sorry, what were you saying about being a strong independent woman again?"

Riley slowly raises her fist and weakly replies, "Go soccer?"

For the rest of practice, all the broken hearted soccer fans whisper frantically to each other about the mysterious Lucas Friar and the random brunette who seems to have captured his heart.

* * *

 _To be continued_


	3. Vignette Two - Practice Part 2

**Vignette Two – Practice Part 2**

 _Author's Note_ : I separated this story into two parts because I wanted the limited omniscient point-of-view to shift from Riley and Maya to Lucas.

* * *

"Lucas! Bro! What's the hurry?" a teammate asks with amusement. He watches Lucas, who has already changed into clean clothes by the time he gets out of the shower, put his things away like a madman.

Lucas looks up at his teammate, who happens to be captain, and chuckles with mild embarrassment. He scratches the back of his head and says, "Uh, no reason. Good practice today!" He zips up his bag and swings it over his shoulder. "I'll see you tomorrow, Jed!"

"Lemme guess, your girlfriend is waiting in the stands," Jed surmises. At Lucas' tentative nod, he adds, "What I can't figure is which one is she? Does she usually come to practice like the others?"

"Wait, what others?" Lucas' asks with genuine confusion.

Jed throws his head back and laughs, "Are you serious? You haven't noticed that the bleachers are nearly full during every practice since we started about a month ago?"

"No, he wouldn't notice that. He doesn't notice much outside of Riley," Zay says coming from the shower. "Yup, the guy is so blind, he practically needs a walking stick to figure out who's noticing." Zay closes his eyes and begins to mime using a walking stick in the locker room.

Lucas looks between Jed and Zay and shakes his head. "No, I've noticed people in the stands. What I don't get is what them being there has to do with me. I thought this school was just really big on soccer," he explains.

Once again, Jed laughs loudly but Zay joins him this time. Jed goes up to Lucas and touches him on one shoulder, "Lucas, I have played on this team for four years. I have practiced with this team for four years. But I have never seen flocks of girls attending our practices like this until this year. I think it all started when you freshmen were playing without your shirts during a scrimmage."

Lucas puts his gym bag down and shakes his head, "No, they're not here for me. I don't even talk to people other than my friends! I haven't even been on the school social media network in a million years. I think you guys have me mixed up with someone else."

Jed turns to Zay and gestures to Lucas with his thumb, "Is this guy for real?" Turning back to Lucas, "When you score a goal, it feels like we're in Latin America or something because everyone in the stands goes wild. But when I scored that sweet goal with a scissor kick the other day – crickets. A scissor kick! I was showboating for them and got nothing!"

"Yeah, and remember that time Ryan accidentally kneed you in the gut and you fell down clutching your stomach?" Zay asks while making an act of clutching his stomach. When Lucas nods with a raised eyebrow, he continues, "Your fans stood up and gasped. Gasped!" He then imitates the high pitch voice of a teenage girl screaming 'Is Lucas all right?! Is Lucas all right?!'

"Guys, they're not there for me! Jed, I've seen them come up to you. And Zay, you have been on like three dates in the last month with three different girls. No one talks to me," Lucas argues.

"Lucas, yes, not ALL of them are there for you. But most of them are. You see, it's a lot like being in a boy band. Yeah, sure, every member has his set of fans but a majority of the fanbase goes crazy over one member in particular," Jed retorts with a matter-of-fact tone.

Zay corroborates, "That's true. All the members of One Direction have their own fans but let's be real, Harry Styles is the most popular. Lucas, you're Harry Styles." Jed shrugs and nods in agreement.

Still not fully convinced, Lucas says, "But no one talks to me. How do you explain that?"

"Well, how could they? You're the first to leave practice! You go straight to, I'm assuming, this Riley girl who has you wrapped around her little finger. Then during the school day, you probably keep a low profile or Riley keeps them from coming near you," Jed says in explanation.

Zay shakes his head, "No, it's not just Riley. Her best friend Maya is short but scrappy. She's got this really intimidating stare. She reminds me of an angry Chihuahua. The moment some girl even tries talking to Lucas, which would in turn possibly hurt Riley's feelings, she's already sending them running to the hills. You see, Maya is insanely protective of Riley. Don't even get me started on HOW protective she was when it came to this guy!" Zay ends by growling and barking at Lucas like a tiny dog.

Lucas scrunches his brows together and ponders the situation. For the life of him, he really does not notice the way girls treat him. Maybe Zay is right, he thinks, if she isn't Riley or one of his friends, he doesn't pay attention. So IF they are there for him, how would that affect things? Is this a big deal?

"Wait, if you guys are right, do you think this would bother Riley? She's out there right now completely surrounded!" he says anxiously.

Zay bites his lip then says, "Well, knowing Riley, if she knew about this, she would've asked you. But after sitting in the stands throughout practice, I'm pretty sure she knows now. As for all of this bothering her, hard to say. Riley is probably the most cheerful spirit I have ever met but she does have her moments of darkness."

Shaking his head and quickly picking up his bags, Lucas says, "Oh no, I gotta go find her!" With that, he rushes out of the locker room. Since moving to New York and becoming a supposed moral compass, the idea of causing anyone distress was abhorrent to him. When it comes to Riley, however, it's practically a religion. He would not be the young man he is without her and the possibility of her feeling discomfort because of him is making his stomach churn.

He gets to the bleachers and looks for his girlfriend. At his arrival, however, many of the girls take notice. They s say "Hi, Lucas" in unison. All the doubt Lucas has in mind about what Zay and Jed were telling him is destroyed in this moment. In response, Lucas raises his hand and gives an awkward wave. With a tight but polite smile at the girls who continue to wave at hims flirtatiously, he heads in the direction of where he left Riley with Smackle.

When he spots her, his heart flutters. She sees him and gives him a nervous smile. She stands up with her schoolbag, tells Smackle goodbye, and walks to him shyly. She meets him at the bottom of the steps and says quietly, "I think we need to talk."

At her words, Lucas' heart sinks to his stomach. As she turns to walk away, he grabs her hand and frantically explains, "Riley, I didn't know about all of this till Zay and Jed said something about it in the locker room just now. Riley, I would never look at these girls like that. I would never hurt you. I would never…"

He's cut off when Riley suddenly throws her arms around his neck and gives him a searing kiss. He automatically drops his bags and wraps his arms around her waist to pull her closer. For a moment, the whole world melts away and all thought of soccer fans is thrown out the window. For a moment, Riley and Lucas are in their small world again where only the two of them exist.

When Riley pulls away from the kiss while maintaining her arms around his neck, Lucas opens his eyes and looks at her. She smiles and says quietly, "Lucas, I know you would never hurt me and I know you probably didn't know about this since you didn't talk to me about it." She punctuates her statements with a quick kiss.

Lucas is stunned. He and Riley have been getting more and more comfortable these days with public displays of affection but never like this. The longer they stay in each other's embrace, he's realizing how much he actually enjoys it.

"Lucas, I would never let you go over something this trivial. You're stuck with me, Friar. I'm sorry but it's true," she adds with mock sympathy.

"Then what do you need to talk to me about?" he asks.

Riley smile suddenly vanishes and is replaced with a scowl: "Lucas Friar, why have you not changed your relationship status on your school profile?! So when we were going through that thing with Maya, you're quick to saying that 'it's complicated' but when we finally start up, you don't change it? What is that?!" Dropping her arms from his body, she spins away from him and marches off.

Lucas shakes his head, laughs, and follows after her. If she wanted him to change his relationship status to "Eternal Love Slave of Riley Matthews," he would do it in a heartbeat. Even though he knows that he's about to get an in-depth interrogation that would make FBI agents proud, he's relieved. Besides, he's always up for another fascinating conversation with the one and only Riley Matthews.


	4. Vignette Three - Storm

**Vignette Three – Storm**

 _Author's Note_ : One of the problems with writing about a show that is ongoing is that we receive information about the characters as the seasons progress. Anyone trying to stick to canon will tell you how difficult it is to navigate through information from the show that directly contradicts one's story.

That being said, I'm going on the assumption that Lucas has no siblings. Unless there's something I've missed on the show. If so, please let me know!

Also, I'm using these vignettes as a workshop for a longer story later but I want to know what people liked. So PLEASE drop a review and tell me what you enjoyed! 3

* * *

"Daddy, nothing is going to happen. Would you relax? If you and mom want to call me every 30 minutes then by all means," a slightly frustrated Riley Matthews tells her father over the phone. She is sitting in a cramp train with a storm progressing outside. Her father is understandably upset that she has left their apartment during what could possibly be one of the worst storms in New York City history. But she had to, there was no other choice.

"Look, mom said it was fine and she trusts me and you need to do the same. Everything is going to be fine. Anyway, I'm sure if you were in my situation, you wouldn't think twice about doing the same thing," she argues. When her father goes silent, she knows she has won. Reluctantly, he tells her that she can go but that he's going to call every hour on the dot for as long as they have cellphone service. Riley nearly tears up at her father's concern and understanding. "I love you, daddy. Tell mommy and Auggie I love them too. Please be safe during the storm," she says before ending the call.

Without her father as a distraction, she goes back to thinking about the reason she leaves home in the middle of a storm.

Oddly, the storm outside parallels the perfect storm of events that lead Riley to sit in a train.

Over the last week, the flu had been going around Abigail Adams High School. Many of her classes had been about 20% less populated than usual. People were dropping like flies, including Maya, Farkle, Zay, and Smackle. All four of them had been out since the middle of the week.

She and Lucas somehow made it through the week without even a single symptom. His parents were relieved, not only because their son was fine but also due to the fact that their anniversary Eurotrip happened to fall on that weekend. They left him on Friday morning with a kiss on his sleeping brow and a generous amount of spending money.

Friday started out fine: Lucas met her at school and they spent the day together. They carried hand sanitizer and avoided touching doorknobs and most surfaces. Everything was going well until Zay's science teacher asked Lucas if he could drop off Zay's homework to him. Without hesitation, Lucas accepted the task.

Although Lucas spent about two hours playing video games with his highly contagious friend, he didn't catch the flu. He even had dinner with Zay's family who were all just as sick.

He did, however, get a fever from walking home in the rain for nearly an hour. Why did he walk in the rain? He lost his subway card and couldn't afford to get a new one because he left the money his parents gave him at home.

So Lucas Friar, a normally robust 17-year-old boy, came down with a fever, which was caused by a storm that began to brew over New York City that Friday afternoon.

And his parents were gone.

And he wouldn't admit he was sick until Riley forced him to video chat with her so that she can access him visually. As she expected, he was sweating like he was in a sauna instead of a posh New York City condominium. His eyes were red-rimmed and his lips were chapped.

As soon as she hung up, she was packing a bag filled with clothes, hygiene products, a flashlight, extra batteries, and an array of food. She was preparing to cook him a large pot of her grandmother's chicken soup, which had magical properties that could cure any sickness. Well, most sicknesses.

So Riley Matthews sits in a cramp train in the middle of the night in order to save her boyfriend in distress.

When she arrives at his place, she sees that she hasn't come a moment too soon. He answers the door wrapped in a large comforter over his head. He smiles weakly at her through the hole in the blanket he leaves for his face. "I hate that you came here in the middle of the night during a storm but I'm also really glad you're here, Riley," he croaks.

Before saying a single word, she smiles toothily at him and slowly pulls out her phone to take a picture of him to send to all their friends and family. When he gives an embarrassed groan, she giggles, puts her phone away, and wraps her arms around his overly warm body. Looking up at him with her head on his chest, she says, "I'm really happy I'm here despite the circumstances."

The moment he lets her in, she springs in to action. First, she makes him sit on the couch and gives him the task of keeping an eye on the weather on TV. This task, of course, is a ruse to keep him occupied as she goes to work on her grandmother's soup.

After she gets the broth going and it begins to simmer, she returns to her charge. His eyes are closed and he shivers under his one-person blanket fort. She touches his face and wakes him up gently, "Lucas, your clothes are soaked and you really need to change out of them. I'm going to give you some medicine but I need to know if you ate something. I don't want you taking pills on an empty stomach, honey."

He gives her the best half smile he could muster and says, "You called me honey. Have I ever told you that I secretly love it when you call me honey?"

Riley giggles and replies, "Well, I wouldn't know that, now would I? Especially, since you _secretly_ love it."

"Riley, please don't tell Zay I said that. He's gonna tease me for days," he pouts. Like a cat, he rubs his face into her palm and closes his eyes. Riley is starting to realize that Lucas isn't entirely himself. Or rather he is himself but without inhibitions. She plans on taking advantage of this more malleable Lucas but first things first.

"Lucas, did you eat yet?"

"I ate at Zay's a few hours ago but threw it all up. The food was good when I ate it but it didn't taste very good when I vomited it."

Riley wrinkles her nose at his description but laughs and shakes her head at the absurdity of his train of thought. "The food will be ready in another 30 minutes and you're going to change out of what you're wearing. Do you want me choose something or you can go to your room?" she asks.

In reply, he raises himself up and walks to his room on the second floor. His footsteps are uneasy, so Riley follows after him to make sure he doesn't fall or bump into anything valuable. When he gets to his room, he drops the blanket and reveals that he's wearing plaid pajama bottoms and a soaked shirt. As if forgetting that she's in the room, he forgoes modesty and takes off his shirt.

While Riley has seen him shirtless, she has never seen him half-naked in a bedroom. She starts thinking that this is exactly the situation her father is worried about it. She knows she should look away and give him privacy but her boyfriend's back muscles deserve to be studied for a second.

Lucas finds a t-shirt and turns to her to change. Because his muscles feel so weak, he's slow to raising his arms and putting on his shirt. For him, this situation is a struggle and further proof that he's sick. For her, she's being treated to an exclusive show starring his six-pack abs. Nervously says, "Uh, Lucas, I'll be in the kitchen. See you!" She runs out of the room and straight to the kitchen.

No one should be that sick and still look amazing. NO ONE.

While the food finishes cooking, Lucas is on the couch eating a popsicle. Riley finds the image of her sports star boyfriend who was as strong as a horse and didn't work at it sitting on his couch in his jammies just watching cartoons. She snaps another picture as evidence and sends it again to friends and family.

"Rileyyyy! Is it finished yet?" he calls from the living room as she stirs the pot.

"Sorry, honey, just a few more minutes!"

"Like how many more minutes? Is it going to be much longer?" he whines. Before she could get irritated with him for trying to rush her, he adds, "I miss you. Forget the soup if it's going to keep you away too long. You've been gone for too long."

Riley puts a fist to her mouth to keep from squealing with joy and grabs the counter to keep from swooning. Lucas is usually a pretty attentive boyfriend, but being sick is making him an extra mushy attentive boyfriend.

"Lucas, I'll be there in a bit. I just want to be sure all the chicken has been cooked through. Why don't you choose a movie for us to watch? We may lose power or Internet, we should make the most of it!"

He's silent for a moment to consider her suggestion then replies, "Okay, just try not to take long." Even if she doesn't see it, she can tell he's pouting.

Smiling to herself, she stirs the soup a few more times before deciding it's adequately finished. She spoons the soup into two bowls, giving him more broth than food knowing that his stomach would be too weak for too many solids. She garnishes the soup with a sprig of rosemary from Lucas' mom collection. Grabbing two Tylenol and a large glass of water, she adds them to the tray she brings to the living room.

When Riley arrives in the living room, Lucas is still looking for a movie on various streaming services. He turns to her with a smile and watches as she carefully places the tray of food on the coffee table. Lucas quickly chooses _Beauty and Beast_ and starts it.

They sit on the floor beside the coffee and prepare to eat. Riley turns to him curiously and asks, "Why did you choose this one?" He usually opts for action or superhero movies.

"Well, I know it's one of your favorites and I think it matches the weather right now," he explains. "They all get caught up inside the castle because of a storm. Belle comes to save the beast and takes care of him, kinda like what you're doing right now."

"Aw Lucas, you're so corny when you're sick. I love it," Riley gushes. She leans forward and kisses the corner of his lips. Turning her attention back to the soup, she says, "Well, I hope you like this. My grandmother taught me how to make it. You'll take some medicine after."

Lucas takes a spoonful, blows on it, and slowly brings it to his mouth. When the healing warmth of the broth spreads through his body, he says, "Riley, I think this is just what I needed. Soup, some medicine, and you. But especially the last one. Thank you so much, sweetheart."

Riley smiles and blushes at him. "Isn't this part of caring about someone? Making sure their needs are taken care of?" she replies simply.

They continue to watch the film and when Riley sees that Lucas is done eating, she prompts him to take the medicine. After about 30 minutes, the pills begin to make him drowsy and he moves to the couch.

"Riley, can you sit up here with me?"

With her attention focused on the TV, she wordlessly acquiesces and sits one end of the couch. As soon as she's settled, Lucas takes one of the pillows he brought from his room and places it on Riley's lap. Before she should protest, he puts his head down and snuggles against her lap.

"I see what you did there, Friar. You wanted me to be your pillow!"

Smiling mischievously at her, he says, "Yes, ma'am. The best kind of pillow for a sick young man on the mend." Feeling satisfied with himself, he returns his attention to the screen. Shaking her head at him, she does the same. As if by instinct, she gently runs her fingers through his hair and lightly scratches his scalp. Before long, the action puts him to sleep.

When the film ends, Riley yawns. She looks at the clock on her phone and it tells her it's about one in the morning. She carefully raises Lucas' pillow so that she can slip out and gently places it back down to the couch. The movement wakes him and he blinks at her groggily, "Where are you going?"

"I'm going to brush my teeth and go to sleep. You rest, I'll be near by," she answers.

Scrunching his brows, he asks, "Where are you going to sleep?"

"I was gonna sleep in your bed since you've set up camp here."

Sitting up quickly, which causes his head to spin momentarily, he says, "Well, then, I'm going to sleep there too."

"Then I'm sleeping here," she replies in amusement.

"Then I'm sleeping here too."

"Then I'm sleeping there."

"Then I'm sleeping there too!"

Squinting her eyes at him in mock suspicion and folding her arms, she says, "Lucas Friar, did you get yourself sick on purpose so that I would somehow end up in your bed?"

Throwing his head back and laughing, he retorts sarcastically, "Oh yes, I also made it stormy outside so that I could set the mood for the seduction! You caught me!"

She giggles and thinks on the situation. He's genuinely sick and nothing would or could happen, she thinks to herself. She also trusts him and knows he would never disrespect her. She also trusts herself. She's her mother's daughter and knows how to set limits in a relationship. After a few more moments of consideration, she stretches her hand out to him as a sign of relenting.

He happily takes her hand and lets her to lead him to his bedroom. Although he can barely keeps his eyes open, his dazed brain registers the significance of this situation. Riley Matthews, the girl who always makes an appearance in his best dreams, is trusting him and going to sleep in bed with him at the place where he usually has said dreams. His heart speeds up at the realization and his affection for his girlfriend grows exponentially.

While Riley goes to the restroom to do her nightly ablutions, he pulls out a fresh comforter from his closet for her. He gets into bed and tries to stay awake to wait for her. Due to his fever, however, he knocks out before she finishes. When she returns to his bedroom, she gets under the blanket he leaves out for her. Turning herbody towards Lucas, she studies his face.

He is beautiful, to be sure, but she knows that's not the only reason she feels deeply for him. She has seen so many cute boys but she has never felt for them the she feels for Lucas. A pretty face means nothing without a good heart. His kindness, loyalty, fortitude, and gentleness make her heart do somersaults, not his face. While the rest of her body responds to him physically, it's what he does and says that really makes her swoon. He's always trying to take care of her even in the littlest ways and she rarely gets to return the favor. She hates that she's sick, but she's glad that she's able to show him how much she cares. She hopes that over the course of their relationship that they will have more opportunities to take care of one another like this.

Scooting a little closer to him in bed, she whispers softly, "Lucas Friar, I love you and will always take care of you."

Although Lucas is asleep and unable to respond, his body seems to react to her confession because his arms reach out to her and pull her close. Turning over, she allows him to spoon with layers of blankets between them.

The storm with its lightning and thunder does nothing to disrupt the peaceful world they create. They sleep soundly and deeply in the comfort of each other's arms. When Lucas' fever breaks and he wakes, he is slightly surprised to find himself clutching his girlfriend. Instead of releasing her, however, he decides to go back to sleep so that he would have an excuse to hold her like this for a little longer.


End file.
